Cookies - A DIY Gift For Any Occasion

Gift-giving is one of those things that makes us feel so good but sometimes it is so, so hard to find something that your recipient will love as much as you hope!

There are people on everyone’s list who are hard to shop for, seem to have everything, seem to like nothing, or seem to like everything out of your price range!

How do you please these people? It really is the thought that counts, but no one wants to give or receive a dud.

The answer is in the kitchen: cookies are the ideal DIY gift for any occasion, any recipient, and any budget.

Cookie gifts, gift baskets, and cookie bouquets are wonderful for the traditional holidays and usual occasions including Christmas, Thanksgiving, anniversaries, and birthday gifts.

But they are also thoughtful and appropriate for the trickier situations that life tends to throw at all of us, including:

• The arrival of a new neighbor, coworker, or boss.
• The retirement gift for a coworker.
• The passing of a friend or family member’s loved one.
• When someone is recovering from an illness or injury.
• Housewarming parties.
• Meeting the soon-to-be in-laws or other important people.
• Attending a picnic or barbecue.
• For business or work meetings.
• Anytime you want to show off your culinary genius.

There are endless varieties of cookie arrangements but our favorites tend to be: chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter, sugar, and sandwich cookies. If you do not know the recipient very well, as in the case of that new neighbor or coworker, you are very safe in baking a selection of these classics.

When you know the recipient better, then you can break out the specialty cookies, like double chocolate coconut macadamia dipped in more chocolate.

Here are some more tips for giving the perfect cookie gift:

• Select two or three cookie recipes to make. If you do more, you risk becoming overwhelmed – and it does drive up the cost if you have to buy ingredients for more than just a few cookies. In addition, if you choose the recipes with which you are most comfortable, you have that much more certainty they will turn out beautifully.
• If you are decorating cookies, such as sugar cookies, chill the dough before and after cutting them. This will prevent them from spreading while baking, which distorts the shape. Also, instead of using flour to prepare your work surface or on your rolling pin, sprinkle confectioner’s sugar.
• If you like to give cookies as holiday gifts, hit the clearance sales starting December 26 and pick up discount tins, boxes, and other containers for next year.
• Invest in some good quality baking supplies. This will make your gifts that much more delicious, and, you will be using them for years. A great cookie sheet is a must; it will have shallow lips on two sides for handling, and the other two sides are flat. This allows you to simply slide cookies off the sheet, and the design ensures they bake evenly.
• Use muffin paper liners to stack your cookies in, and then layer them in your container. Many people like to do one box per cookie variety, but you can mix and match, if you want.
• If you are shipping, choose varieties that will not break, get stale, or be otherwise worse for the wear from the trip. Some good ones to try: biscotti, hermits, ranger cookies, brownies, chocolate chip cookie bars (bars ship better than cookies), oatmeal raisin, and sugar cookies without icing. Chocolate-coatings will melt, so it’s best to skip that step.
• Before you package your cookies, freeze them for a day. Individually wrap each one with plastic wrap and pack tightly into a container. If there is wiggle room, pack with tissue paper, newspaper, or crinkle-cut paper.
• Consider giving a cookie mix-in-a-jar. You can attach a whisk, wooden spoon, or set of measuring spoons with a ribbon for an extra special touch.

So what do you think? Would you consider sending cookies as a little gift to someone?

Giving cookies is like giving a bit of warmth.There is a reason that these are our classic comfort food: they make us feel a bit happier with each bite.